Can't call it home
by Catnip1Dlover
Summary: Alexandra has been moving to different countries with different foster families for a lot of years. When she moves to London to live by her own and finds an old friend, will they be able to be finally together? 1D Zayn/OC
1. Chapter 1

I looked out the window of the plane. All I could see were clouds. I turned my view away, sighing. I had seen this so many times. It was a beautiful view, I always loved to watch the clouds, but at the moment it made me sick to see them. It meant I was moving somewhere I had never been before. It meant that I was going to start a new life and I just hated the thought of that. At least I was coming back to my hometown…well almost.

My name is Alexandra, Alex or Lexy for short. I'm 17 years old and I turn 18 in 2 months. My life has been…complicated. I'm an orphan, you see, I never meet my real parents. Not that I mind, I'm completely fine with not knowing them. What has been hard has been to move almost every year to live in a new place with a new family.

You see the orphanage I used to be at put me in this foster families program where they sent me with a foster family until I turned of age to live by my own. But, I never stayed long with those families. The longest I stayed with a family were two years and the shortest…One month. It all started when I was 12 years old. I stayed with my first foster family for one year until they thought I was too much of a trouble maker and made me go back. Since then I have been moving with different families in different countries. It's always the same. I'm sent with a family, they see me as a wonderful girl and two or three weeks later they start thinking I'm a trouble maker and after one month, they send me back. I don't blame them really, I do am some kind of trouble maker. Not the kind that gets into fights or sells drugs or something like that. No, actually I never got along with people. I would make cold comments to my new foster siblings or I would never get out of my room or at my schools I would never pay attention, or never do any work or I would just not go. The families would just get tired of my rebel attitudes and get me back to the orphanage.

So I am now moving from Los Angeles, California to London. I was glad to be getting back to London, I was born there and I just loved to be there. I was moving to live on my own. The orphanage had decided that since I was going to turn 18 in 2 months it was not worth putting me with another foster family.

Well…I was not going to live totally on my own. I was actually going to go to college where I will share a room with another girl. I don't really mind that, as long as I can live my life as I want it to, it's fine by me.

The plane finally landed. I waited a bit until some people had already passed until I got out. As I walked out of the plane I took a deep breath, breathing the fresh and amazing British air. Think of me as crazy, but I find a difference between the British air and the American. I just like British more. I passed through everything without a problem. I already knew all the process since I had went through it millions of times before. I was just waiting for my trunk when someone bumped against me making me fall.

"Ow!" I cried as I hit the floor "Watch your step, would you?" I hissed

"I'm so sorry" said a guy from above. I noticed the strong Irish accent

"You better be!" I snarled, now noticing my bag and everything from inside were spread all over the floor. I groaned and started to pick everything up.

"Here, let me help you" The guy kneeled in front of me and started to gather all my stuff.

I didn't say a word, just picked everything, not even looking at the guy. When I had put everything inside my bag, both of us stood up and I finally meet his eyes.

They were a bright color of light blue. His hair was blond and he had this really cute smile drawn on his face. He was taller than me but not by much.

"Again, I'm really sorry" he said

"Whatever" I said "Just don't repeat it"

"Don't worry, I won't" he said grinning

I rolled my eyes and turned around, looking for my trunk once again. The guy stood next to me, also looking for his trunk. Just then I noticed other 4 guys standing next to the guy.

"Found it yet?" one of them asked. I could see over the corner of my eye that he was curly

"Not yet" the Irish guy said

"We don't have much time!" said another one.

"It's not my fault I can't find it!" The Irish guy cried

"It's ok…I can't find mine either" said another one, and his voice sounded a bit familiar, even though I was not sure.

"I thought you have already found yours, Zayn!"

At the sound of that name I turned to look at them. I could see them now clearly. There was the Irish guy, next to him was the one I had seen with curly hair but I also noticed he had green eyes. There was also another guy with brown hair and eyes and another one with similar hair color but with blue eyes. Standing on the other side of the Irish guy was another guy with raven black hair. He also had an earring on his left ear.

I stared for a bit to this last guy. He seemed familiar, I knew I knew him, but from where?

But it wasn't until he turned around and I could see his perfect chocolate brown eyes that I realized who he was.

"Zayn Malik?" I asked "You're Zayn Malik?"

"That's me" he said nodding "Look, I'm in a hurry, do you want a picture?"

"Want a picture? No! I'm Ale-"I couldn't finish my sentence 'cause the curly guy interrupted me

"Zayn, we have to go" he said

"I'm coming!" Zayn called

Zayn got out a notebook and wrote something fast.

"What's your name?" he asked me

"Alexandra"

He kept writing and then ripped the paper out of the notebook, giving it to me.

"Sorry" he said "see you"

I stared at him as he walked away. He hadn't recognized me. Well, no wonder there. We had met when I was 14 (he was 15). I had just moved to West Lane Baildon, Bradford with another new family. Zayn and I were neighbors and also went to the same school. We became great friends. We were actually best friends for two years, but then I had to leave again and we lost contact with each other. But I remembered him. He used to be my best friend. I couldn't foget him. How could I? But he had forgotten me…maybe I didn't mean that much to him.

I sighed, putting the paper on my bag not bothering to read it.

Outside, there were a lot of people. Some were trying to get a taxi and others were meeting with their family members.

I looked around, trying to get a sight of Zayn, but he wasn't here anymore.

I decided to forget about it all. I was going to start a new life. I couldn't keep holding to something (or someone) from my past.

I got a taxi and told the driver the address of my college. He nodded and started to drive.

I looked for my phone in my bag. I wanted to check my twitter, tell the people (not that I had many followers) I was safe and sound in London. I looked inside my bag for what felt forever. I couldn't find my phone. I searched in all the small bags that it had inside but it was no-where to be seen. Where had I left it? I sighed. Great, just what I needed. I had lost my phone.

As I looked inside my bag once again I found the note Zayn had written at the airport.

I didn't know why he had done it. I decided to read it and find out what it said.

"_Sorry to talk to you in such a hurry. I try to talk to my fans as much as I can, but I cant right now. As I told you, I'm in a hurry._

_Hope you have a good day, and I hope you enjoy the concert, if you're going._

_From Zayn to Alexandra_

_(Funny, I used to have a great friend with that name)"_

And then he signed the paper. I was left even more confused than before.

Talk to his fans? I knew Zayn could be vain, but not like this.

And what concert was he talking about? He made it sound as if he were some famous person. But he couldn't be, could he?

"These boys are everywhere" The driver scoffed, bringing me back to reality

"Who?" I asked

"The ones on the radio"

I listened to the radio. There a song from a boy band. The rhythm of the song was great, so were the voices. The lyrics said something about you not knowing you were beautiful. It was a nice song, really.

"Who are they?" I asked

"Some boy band called One Direction" he answered "they're really famous here in UK, I'm surprised you don't know them"

"I haven't been in UK for a few years" I said "but how do you know about them? You don't seem like the kind of person who would listen to a boy band"

"I don't listen to them" he said "but my daughter is crazy for them…forced me to buy her tickets for their concert tomorrow"

"Oh I see"

We reached the college. I climbed out of the car, thanking and paying the driver.

He gave me the change and drove off. I turned to face the campus. It was HUGE! But amazing. I couldn't wait to start classes here.


	2. Chapter 2

I walked inside the building and went straight to the reception were a lady was sitting behind a desk.

"Hello, how can I help you?" she said as soon as she saw me

"Hello" I said back "I'm a new student"

"What's your name?"

"Alexandra Vane"

"Oh, you're the girl coming from America, am I right?" I nodded as a response "you're taking a literature career, right?"

"Yes…that's me"

"Well, here's your room key. Room H12" she said giving me a key "Your schedule is here. You start classes on Monday. If you need anything, tell me"

"Alright, thanks"

I grabbed my schedule and walked away. I walked through the halls of the school until I found my room. I walked inside to find a girl unpacking her own trunk. She had bright ginger hair. Her skin was pale and her face was covered with freckles. She didn't seem much older than me. She must be the same age as I am. She turned to me, her green eyes locking with my hazel eyes.

"Oh, hello there!" she said smiling brightly

"Hello" I said closing the door behind me "You're my roommate, right?"

"Yes I am!" she beamed "My name is Irene, what about you?"

"I'm Alexandra, nice to meet you"

"Nice to meet you too" she said smiling once again "are you new?"

"Yes, I'm starting for a career in literature"

"That's great! I'm studying art"

"That's cool"

I took the free bed and started to unpack all my stuff. Irene and I talked a bit, getting to know each other. She was rather nice. A bit annoying since she never stopped talking, but I can get used to it.

When all my cloth was at the closet from my side of the room, and all my stuff had a place, I remembered I hadn't found my phone on the taxi.

I started to look for it once again, but just as before, it was nowhere to be seen. I sighed frustrated. I couldn't have lost it! I tried to remember where I had put it. It had been in my bag all the time, which had been on my shoulder all the time, until…Until the Irish boy from the airport had bumped against me. My bag had fallen and almost everything that was inside had spread around the floor. I must have had lost it there. But I had picked up a phone. I remember I had put it…on my jacket!

I looked for my jacket and started to search on the pockets. I felt something cold and squared. I sighed in relief before taking it out of my right pocket. But when I looked at the phone, it was not mine. Yes, it was an IPhone like mine, but it was not my IPhone.

"Is everything alright?" Irene asked

"Yeah" I said unlocking the phone. Luckily it had no password. I looked at the wallpaper. It was a photo of five guys wearing fake mustaches. I recognized them. They were the five guys from the airport! There was the one with curly hair the other two guys with brown hair (one messier that the other), the Irish boy and Zayn…

I sighed. This must be the phone of that Irish boy who bumped against me and made my bag fall. We must have had mixed the phones when we picked everything up. So, if I had his phone…he must have my phone!

"I'm going for a walk" I said

"Alright, I'll go pick up all my books and stuff" Irene said "See you later!"

"Bye!"

I took the phone and walked out. I had decided to call my phone. If the Irish boy had it, then he would answer.

I reached a café and I sat down by one of the tables on the far corner. I took a deep breath, hoping he would answer, and then dialed my phone number.

I heard the long "beeeep" 3 times until finally picked it up.

"Hello?" Came the voice of the Irish guy

"What are you doing with my phone!" I demanded

"Hey, calm down" he said "I could ask you the same"

"Oh, you know really well why I have your phone"

"And you know why I have yours" he said "So…why are you asking?"

"I need it back!" I said, ignoring his comment

"Yeah, I need mine back too"

"We could meet somewhere" he suggested "To get our phones back"

"Alright…meet me at the Ice-cream Parlor 'Il Gelato' in ten"

"Sorry…I can't today" he said "I'm busy"

"Well…then tell me when!"

"What about you come tomorrow at the hotel I'm staying?"

"Time and address"

"Come around lunch time, I'll text you the address" I nodded, soon remembering he couldn't see me

"Alright" I said "See you then"

"Wait!" he said before I could hang up

"What?" I asked annoyed

"What's your name?"

"Alexandra"

"I'm Niall"

"Nice to meet you"

"Same here!" he said "Well, Alexandra, I have to go…see you tomorrow!"

"Alright, goodbye"

I sighed after hanging up. He was a nice guy. Well, he sounded nice.

The phone vibrated in my hands. He had just texted me the address of the hotel he was staying. The Hotel…If he was staying at a hotel it was because he hadn't come with his family. I bet he had come with those boys he was at the airport. And if he had come with them, then they must be in the same hotel as him, meaning Zayn would be at the same hotel as him…So that means I could get a chance of seeing Zayn tomorrow. Not that I cared if I see him or not. It would be better if I didn't, it would just disappoint me even more to remember he didn't remember me…but perhaps, if he saw me again, he would remember.


	3. Chapter 3

I was walking around London. I already knew the city by memory but I wanted to see it all again. I had done some shopping and was now just walking around looking at the shops.

I walked inside a music store. It was quiet inside. Just a few people were there.

I went to the shelf full of CDs. I was looking for Coldplay's new album, Mylo Xyloto. I found it and was about to grab it when someone pushed me from behind.

"I'm sorry" a deep voice said from behind

"It's alright" I said turning around to coma face to face with Zayn Malik "Hey!"

"Hello" he said back "Do I know you? You seem familiar"

"Yeah…we met before" I said nodding, hoping he would remember me

"We meet at the airport, right?"

"Yeah" I said slightly disappointed "You gave me a note with your autograph"

"Oh, now I remember clearly" he said smiling "sorry for leaving that fast"

"It's alright…I didn't want an autograph anyways"

"Then…A photo perhaps?"

"No…I expected something more" I said sadly "but it doesn't matters anymore…excuse me"

I walked past him to the area were all the instruments were. I won't lie. I was disappointed he didn't remember me. He was my best friend, one of the most important persons in my life and he had forgotten me! It hurt.

"You look disappointed" he said coming to my side once again

"I am disappointed" I said, not meeting his eyes

"Why?" he asked but I didn't answer "Please, tell me why you're disappointed"

"I'm disappointed because you don't remember me" I confessed

"Because I don't remember you?" he asked, almost laughing "I'm sorry to throw it at you, but I can't remember all of my fans"

"I'm not a fan of you" I spat angrily

"Wait, so you're not a fan of One Direction?"

"Of course not!" I exclaimed "I didn't even know you were part of that band"

"Then…how do you know who I am?"

"We meet long ago" I said walking to the door "By the way, why you continued smoking? It's bad for your health, did you know?"

"I don't smoke anymore" he said frowning a bit

"I know you're lying" I said "You always frown when you lie, plus you just put your hand in the left pocket of your jeans. That's where you usually hide the cigarettes"

"How did you-"

"I just moved here from America" I interrupted him "I moved away when I was 16, in 2010…My name's Alexandra by the way"

I gave him a small smile and walked away, leaving him to put all the pieces together.

**Zayn POV: **

She walked away, leaving me even more confused than I was before. That girl knew me more than I thought. But how? She said her name was Alexandra, but she couldn't be the Alexandra I knew. She lived far away. The Alexandra I knew, the friend of mine, my Lexy had moved to New York two years after we met. We were neighbors and we had gone to school together, we were great friends and it had hurt me when she left.

This Alexandra couldn't be the one I knew. She had left to never come back. Plus, she looked different from the Lexy I knew. The Lexy I know had bushy brown hair. It always stood in every direction possible, and it seemed it had life by its own. I remember, I always teased her because she never cared to brush or comb it. Her eyes were the perfect shade of hazel. They were a little bit too wide but it just made her add to her personality. She was always curious. Always wanting to know what was going on, and wanting to learn a bit more every day. She also liked to speak her mind out, no matter what other people thought, she said what she thought in every chance she got. She was a little random at times, kind of like Louis, but not that much. She would say the most random and funny comments in the most inappropriate times, but they always made everyone laugh. People thought she was weird, but she was actually really sweet and caring, always worrying for the people she loved. She made me stop smoking when I was 16.

But this Alexandra…the one I had just met. She was different from the one I knew. Her hair was brown and her eyes were wide and hazel too, but her hair had something different. It isn't as messy and bushy as it used to be. Yes, it is still curly, but it's straighter than it was. It falls on her back in perfect curls, obviously made with an iron and not natural. And her personality…she seems to be more serious and cold. She gets angry easily, completely different from the Lexy I knew.

But then again, she had known I smoked, and that I hided my cigarettes in my left pocket of my jeans. She knew me more than anyone else did, but how was that possible?

I sighed. I decided to drop it. It made me no good to think about Lexy. It had hurt me when she left. We were really close. I actually thought we were going to be something more than friends. But then she came with the news that she was moving with a new foster family in New York, and she left one week later. We tried to keep in touch at first but a few months later I entered to the X-Factor and with everything going on, the band forming, going to the live show and then signing a contract with Simon, we lost contact and never talked to each other again. I got over it. I had convinced myself that she was gone and that she would never go back. Also, I had convinced myself that she had forgotten all about me and was probably with someone else.

It had hurt, yes, but I tried not to think about it. That's what I do. Forget about everything that once hurt me…but now, with this new girl and everything, memories had started to come. All those happy moments we have lived together. The jokes, the laughs, even the cries. I just hoped this girl, was the one I have missed for so long, and that we could go back to like it was before.


	4. Chapter 4

I reached the hotel Niall had given me the address of. It really was an amazing hotel, really fancy and luxurious. I looked around the place amazed. I had never been in a place like this one before.

I walked up to the desk where I guessed the receptionist was. A lady was sitting there, typing something on the computer and answering phones. I stood there waiting for her to finish talking on the phone until she finally turned to me.

"May I help you?" she asked

"Yeah, I'm here to visit someone" I said "Top floor, room 14"

"You can't" the lady said turning to the computer once again

"But why not?" I asked

"Visits from fans are not allowed" she said simply "I'm sorry"

"But I'm not a fan!" I exclaimed "I came to visit Niall"

"As I said, you can't. I'm sorry"

I sighed and walked away from the desk. It was no use complaining with her, she wouldn't let me go and if I continued trying to convince her it was more likely she would call security and they would kick me out of the hotel.

I called to my phone, hoping Niall will answer, but he didn't. I tried calling again but no one answered. I sighed frustrated, putting the phone away. I sat down on one of the sofas on the lobby, trying to think of a way of going to Niall's room.

I tried calling him other two times and sent him around 5 texts but he didn't answer, any!

I was going to send another text when the phone started to vibrate in my hands. The photo of a guy with messy brown hair and blue eyes appeared and the name "Louis" appeared below.

I fight occurred in my mind, deciding to answer or not. I shouldn't, it wasn't my phone, but I could recognize the guy from being in the background of Niall's phone, and also I remembered him from the airport. He was probably pant of the band Zayn had said he was part of. And if he was, then he should be staying in this same hotel and he would know why Niall was not answering and could tell him I was waiting at the lobby.

"Hello?" I asked, deciding to answer

"Hey Nialler!" Came a cheering voice on the other line "Hazza and I are on our way, make sure to have lunch ready"

"uuuummmm….I'm sorry, Niall is not here" I said

"Oh" he said "And…who is this?"

"My name is Alexandra, and I accidently mixed phones with Niall at the airport" I said

"Oh right! How could I forget!" he exclaimed "I'm sorry…I'm Louis by the way"

"Hey Lou! Who you talking to?" came a voice from behind

"Remember Niall mixed phones with a girl at the airport?" Louis asked, obviously to the other person he was with "I'm talking to her"

"You mean, the hot chick that appears in the photos of the phone Niall had?"

"That's her, I guess"

"Uuuuh…you do know I'm still here, don't you?" I asked rolling my eyes

"Right, sorry" Louis said putting his attention back to me

"Let me talk to her!" I hear the other guy say and I could hear as he got hold of the phone, much to Louis' protests "Hello, I'm Harry"

"Hey…look, I really need to talk to Niall" I said "I need my phone back"

"Why don't you go to the hotel we're staying at?" Harry asked

"I'm here but they won't let me go to your room!" I exclaimed

"Well…we're on our way there" he said "why don't you wait for us and we'll take you to the room?"

"Guess that's the only option" I said sighing

"Alright, we'll be there in a mo"

"Goodbye Alex!" I heard Louis say before hanging up.

I sighed and lay back against the sofa. I noticed Niall had internet in his phone so I started to look for some info about this band Zayn was at. I typed his name "Zayn Malik" on Google and soon many links appeared. I pressed the link to Wikipedia and started to read. I was surprised there was a biography of Zayn in Wikipedia. I found out he's part of the famous British-Irish boy band One Direction.

I remembered the song I had heard in the taxi and couldn't help but think they were really talented.

I read some more about the band and the other four guys: Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, Liam Payne and Niall Horan. I then started to look for pictures. Yes, they were definitely the guys I had seen at the airport. I couldn't believe how famous they were. Another thought came into my mind. Many girls would find me lucky. I had mixed phones with Niall Horan, had talked on phone with Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles and also had been friends with Zayn Malik for two years. This was crazy!

"You're Alex, right?" I heard someone say from behind.

I closed the tabs in the phone and put it away, standing up and turning around to face Louis and Harry.

"That's me" I said nodding with a small smile in my face

"Nice to meet you, I'm Louis"

"And I'm Harry"

"I know" I said, shaking both of their hands "I mean, who doesn't knows who you are?"

"That's true" Harry said smirking

"So…should we go?" Louis asked

"Please?"

He chuckled and started to walk away, telling me to follow. I followed him with no hesitation and Harry walked next to me.

"So…how come you mixed phones with Niall?" Harry asked

"He bumped against me on the airport" I said "all my stuff in my bag fall and he helped me pick it all up…I think it was there"

"Oh I remember" Louis said, looking at us over his shoulder "He apologized at least a hundred times"

"They weren't that much" I said

"Oi!" Harry exclaimed "So you were the girl who was waiting for her trunk next to us?"

"That was me" I said nodding

We reached their room. When Louis opened the door and I stepped inside I couldn't help but notice how messy it was inside. There was stuff everywhere! And you could hear voices coming from every direction.

"Don't eat all the chips, Niall!" someone yelled "We'll have lunch soon!"

"But I'm Hungry!" yelled someone else, I guessed it was Niall "And Lou and Harry are taking too long!"

"Shut up guys!" A new voice called "We got to get this room cleaned"

"Why?" the other two guys called back

"Because we're having a guest!" the other called back "Niall, you should know about that!"

I turned to Louis and Harry confused. They both shrugged and walked deeper inside the house. I decided to follow. I really didn't feel like staying all alone at the door waiting.

"We're home!" Louis called

"And we found someone on our way here!" Harry added

Soon three more guys walked inside the living room where Louis and Harry had guided me to. There was the Irish boy, Niall. The other guy whose name I had read was Liam and next to him was Zayn.

Zayn's eyes widened when he saw me.

"Alexandra!" Niall said smiling at me

"Hello" I said smiling back

"What are you doing here?" Zayn asked

"I'm here to get my phone back" I said, my attention turning to Niall "I called you but you didn't answer! I had been waiting in the lobby for at least 20 minutes until Louis and Harry called and they offered to guide me here!"

"I'm sorry" Niall apologized "But Liam took the phone away!"

"Just because Louis and Harry were stalking it" Liam said, giving me back my phone "I'm Liam by the way"

"Alexandra" I said smiling as I grabbed my phone in my hands "Here's yours by the way" I said giving Niall his own phone

"Thanks" he said

"Just to make it clear" Harry spoke "We were not stalking your phone!"

"You were" Liam said rolling his eyes

Niall offered me a drink and I accepted. He guided me to the kitchen, everyone else following behind. Niall gave me some soda and I thanked him, taking a small sip from the glass.

"Alexandra" Zayn Spoke "May I have a word with you?"

"Uh…sure!"

He guided me outside, closing the sliding door behind him.

"Put all the pieces together yet?" I asked raising an eyebrow

"I think I have, Lexy"

At the sound of my old nickname my heart skipped a beat. I looked at him and smiled. He gave me a weak smile in return.

I couldn't help myself. I wrapped my arms around him, hugging him tightly. He was taken back, but then hugged me back.

"I can't believe you forgot about me!" I cried

"I didn't!" he said breaking apart

"You didn't recognized me the first two times we saw each other"

"You look different from what you looked like…You changed your hair" He said pointing at my curls "they're too perfect"

"Don't you like it?"

"I do…but it's not you" he said "I like your messy, curly, bushy brown hair better"

I giggled and looked at my shoes. I remember how I never used to comb my hair and I would let it loose, standing in every direction possible. People used to tell me it looked like Hermione's in the first two movies of Harry Potter, just a bit messier.

"I thought it annoyed you" I said, remembering how he loved his hair to be perfect and how he couldn't stand mine being so messy

"It does…but I like how you look with it"

We kept talking, catching up a little when Niall, Liam, Louis and Harry walked out of the door, going to our direction.

"Hey! Not fair" Harry cried

"You can't take Alex away and flirt with her!" Louis said to Zayn "I saw her first!"

"Not true!" Niall said "I saw her first"

"Actually, I meet her first" Zayn said

"Why are you fighting over this, anyways?" I asked

"To see who gets to date you first" Louis said smirking

"Sorry, I'm not getting into relationships right now"

"I will wait"Louis said winking

"Actually" Liam said rolling his eyes at Zayn "We came to see who was up for lunch, of course you are invited Alexandra"

"Please, call me Alex" I said "And I'm sorry, but I'm supposed to meet with a friend at the new Pizza place"

"Invite her!" Harry said "We were going there anyways"

"Are you sure?" I asked "She's a fan of your band"

"Makes it all better" Niall said excited "We love to meet our fans"

"Yeah! Call her!" Louis exclaimed

"Alright…we'll meet her there"

I texted Irine telling her I was bringing some friends with me. She texted back telling me it was alright.

"Let's go then!"


	5. Chapter 5

We climbed inside Louis' car. We fit, a bit squeezed but we did. Louis was driving and Harry was at the shotgun. Liam, Zayn, Niall and I were at the back. I was sitting between the window and Zayn, who was next to Liam who was next to Niall. We kept talking on our way to the restaurant. Zayn told me the whole thing about the X-Factor and how they became a band. The others adding information every once in a while.

We reached the Pizza place soon. Both Niall and Harry ran to the door as soon as they were out of the car. I chuckled and followed the rest inside. There weren't much people inside, and the ones who were didn't seem to know who the boys were. That's good.

I looked around the place, trying to locate Irine but I couldn't see her. I was about to turn around when I heard a scream to my right. I turned and saw Irine staring with wide eyes, almost fainting.

"Wotcher Irine!" I said

"T-they are…O-one… O-one D-Dire-ection…What are you doing with them?"

"Told you I was coming with some friends"

"You never told me you were friends with the super hot boy band One Direction!" she exclaimed, her cheeks suddenly turning bright red as the buys chuckled.

"Am not" I said shrugging "Just met them today"

"Girls" Liam spoke as he stood next to me "should we go take a seat?"

We all agreed and went to take a table at the far corner of the restaurant. I sat between Zayn and Louis. Irine was right in front of me sitting between Niall and Harry. Liam was on one of the sides of the table, between Harry and Louis.

"So…What's your name?" Harry asked to Irine

"Irine…Irine Botev" she said shyly

"Nice to meet you Irine" Liam said "I'm Liam"

"I'm Harry"

"Zayn"

"I'm Louis"

"And my name is Niall"

They all said presenting themselves with a smile. Irine smiled brightly. She was really excited, I could tell.

"So…I take you're a fan" Louis said, noticing the same as I had

"Y-yeah" she said nodding "I love your music"

"Why, thank you" Louis said grinning

"What about you?" Zayn asked me "What do you think of our music?"

"Haven't heard" I said shrugging

"You haven't?" they all asked (including Irine) shocked, looking at me as if I was mental.

"N-no" I said "Just a bit of one"

"Which one?" Niall asked

"One about someone not knowing she's beautiful?"

"What Makes You Beautiful" Liam said

"Oi! I love that song!" exclaimed Irine

"Doesn't everyone?" Harry asked grinning, his dimples showing.

"Guess I'll have to buy the album" I said shrugging

"I'll get you a copy" Zayn said

We ordered our food, 3 large pizzas, one with pepperoni, other with ham and the last one with extra-cheese. We started to eat while chatting. Louis and Harry kept cracking jokes, making all of us laugh, getting odd looks from the other clients but we didn't care.

"Alright, let's get serious" Liam said clearing his throat "How comes you know Zayn so much?"

Everyone turned to me, looking at me with eyebrows raised and wanting to know the answer. They obviously were all wondering the same.

"We met long ago, when I was 14 and he was 15" I started "I had just moved to Bradford with my new family"

"We were neighbors and went to the same school" Zayn continued "We became great friends"

"But two years later I had to move once again, and we lost contact with each other"

"Where did you go?" Niall asked, eating another slice of Pizza

"Across the pond" I said "All the way to New York!"

"And you lived there until you moved here again?" Irine asked, I hadn't told her anything about my past.

"No…I moved a few times after living in New York for three months"

"Where did you moved after that?"

"Well…I moved to Tennessee. Five months later I moved to North Carolina. After living four months there I went to live to Mexico and stayed there for six months until I moved to California for eight months until I moved here"

"Wow…you really have lived in many places" Harry said really impressed

"More than you can imagine" I said sighing

"Why does your family moves that much?" Irine asked

"My family doesn't moves…I move by my own"

"Why?" Louis asked "What about your family?"

"I don't have any" I said looking down at my nails "I have been moving with different foster families"

"I'm sorry" Louis asked "shouldn't have asked"

They all fall silence. It always happened. Every time I told someone about me being an orphan and not having a family and having to move from place to place with new foster families, they said they were sorry and stayed in silence. I hated it! I didn't like people who had pity for me.

"I remember" Zayn said suddenly, breaking the silence "Mrs. Tibbs used wanted to get you back the same week you arrived"

"She never wanted me to come" I said nodding

"But her husband loved you" Zayn said "He used to call you 'the daughter he never had'"

"Oh yeah" I said grinning "We used to annoy Mrs. Tibbs"

We kept talking. I told everyone about past experiences with some of my foster families. I told them why I had left some of the families. Of course, I only told them the good memories and fun experiences, I even told them some pranks I had done!

"That's amazing!" Harry exclaimed

"We're so calling you for our next prank!" Louis said, smirking

Eventually we left the restaurant. We were at the parking lot.

"Wanna go watch a movie?" Liam asked me and Irine

"I'm not sure we should" Irine said "Classes start tomorrow"

"Yeah, we can't go to sleep too late" I agreed

"Alright then…guess we'll see each other another time" Niall said

"What's your phone number?" Louis asked pulling his phone out "so we keep in touch"

We gave them all our phone numbers and they gave theirs to us. We said goodbye, hugging each one of them, and then went on our way. Irine and I couldn't believe our luck. We had spent all afternoon with the famous British-Irish boy band One Direction! Many girls would kill to have this opportunity.


	6. Chapter 6

My first day of classes had gone pretty well. Most of the classes were just to get to know the teachers and the subject. I don't have many classes, but I liked them all. My teachers were alright. I didn't dislike any of them and they seemed to be nice enough. As for my classmates, well, I hadn't really met them all, just a few. They seemed nice. I had instantly become friend with the girl I sat next to. Her name is Kalin. She is 18 years old and has beautiful straight black hair that reaches her mid-back. Her eyes are some color between grey and sky-blue, mostly grey. She's a bit taller than me, but I'm actually really short. She is really nice and funny.

I also met these really nice guys who were sitting on the desks behind us. They're Fredderick and James. Fred (that's how he likes to be called) has sand blond hair color. His eyes are hazel just like mine, but a bit darker. James, on the other hand, has raven black hair and his eyes are brown. They both are quiet good-looking, but not my type of guys. But they are also really nice we clicked as friends instantly.

The four of us were sitting by the café of the campus. We were chatting about our lives. Our first week in college was over. Even if I had know them just for a few they, we were really close, almost as if we had known each other for years!

We were laughing at some joke James had done when I saw Irine walk inside the café. Her ginger hair was hold in a bon at the back of her hair, letting a few strands of hair lose, framing her heart-shaped face. I noticed as some guys from the café stared after her, I had to smile. She was beautiful, she didn't believe it herself, but she was.

"Hello Alex" she said, spotting me

"Hello Irine!" I said smiling "care to join us?"

"Oh no, I don't want to intrude"

"Nonsense!" I exclaimed "Everyone, this is Irine, she's my roommate"

"Nice to meet you" Irine said smiling shyly

"Irine, they are Kalin, Fred, and James" I said pointing at each by name "they are my classmates"

"Pleasure to meet you" Kalin said smiling back

"Why don't you order a coffee and sit with us?" Fred offered

"Oh no, I can't really" she said "Actually I just came to talk to Alex"

"What's up?" I asked

"They want to see us…said there's someone they want us to meet"

"Oh" I said sitting up straight "Who told you?"

"Niall" she said "Texted me this morning"

"Wonder why they didn't text me"

I looked in my bag for my phone. Not a wonder I hadn't received a text from them, it was dead with no charge! I groaned and put it back in my bag.

"When should we be there?" I asked

"He said around six…want to have a movie night"

"what time is it?"

"5:45"

"Are you going?"

"Of course! Can't disappoint them, can I?"

"I bet you're only going to see Niall" I said rolling my eyes but grinning. I saw as her cheeks turned a dark shade of pink.

"That's not true!" she exclaimed

"Then why are you blushing?" I teased her

"I'm not…Stop bothering!" she exclaimed, looking completely embarrassed. I just laughed at her reaction. It was so easy to tease her!

"You go…I'll text Zayn telling him I'm going to be a bit late"

"Alright" she turned to my friends and smiled weakly "It was nice to meet you"

"You too"

They all smiled back at her and she walked off.

We hadn't seen the boys since our lunch at the restaurant, but we kept in touch. I would constantly text with Liam or Louis and would call Zayn. We had already caught on with our lives and were now as close as we were before I left. Of course, I had grown closer to Liam and Louis too, and also to Harry and Niall. Irine, too, seemed to be growing closer to the boys. She would text Niall every single day! I knew she had a thing for him, and I guessed he had a thing for her too, of course, I knew nothing for sure. But every time Niall's name came into a conversation Irine's face would lit up, and she would blush like mad every time I teased her.

"Who was she talking about?" James asked

"Oh, just some friends of ours" I said. None of them knew I was friends with One Direction. Hell, I couldn't tell them! I didn't know if Kalin was a fan, but she for sure knew who they were. Also, if someone finds out Irine and I are friends with them they would turn completely mental!

"Niall and Zayn" Kalin repeated the names "Funny, there's some guys in this really famous band that have those names"

"Do they really?" I asked laughing nervously

"Their last names are not Horan and Malik, are they?" Kalin asked really serious

"Uuummm….well…."

"No, of course not" Kalin said laughing "it's impossible you could be friends with some boys as famous as them…no offence, but I bet they hang out with people as famous as they are"

"Yeah…perhaps they do" I said looking down at my now empty cup "I better go get ready"

I stood and said goodbye to the three of them. They all said goodbye to me back and I walked off.

I walked into my shared room to find that Irine was already gone. I checked my clock. No doubt she was already gone, it was 6:25. I put my phone to charge and then I walked to my closet and changed into some skinny black jeans and a blouse with blue and white stripes. I put on my converse with the design of the England flag. I walked to the mirror, noticing my hair was hold in a tight bon at the back of my head. I let it go and it fall on curls over my shoulders. I had not combed it this morning and it was all messy. It wasn't as bushy as it uses to do, but it was almost there. I would usually use some cream to control my curls, or use the iron to make them more perfect, but I remembered what Zayn had told me, and I decided to leave my hair the way it was, just the messy curly brown hair.

I grabbed my white Jack Wills hoodie. I turned to the clock. 6:50. Oh well…I had forgotten to text Zayn, but Irine knew I was going late, so she probably told the others.

I put my phone and my keys in my bag and walked out of the room. I called for a taxi which took me to the boy's house.

I knocked at the door and Louis opened. He grinned and greeted me with a massive hug.

"You have no idea how much I've missed you!" he cried dramatically

"I've miss you too Lou" I said "But I really need to breath"

"Right…sorry" he said letting go of me.

I smiled up at him and then he guided me to the living room, were everyone was sitting, watching a movie. My eyes instantly turned to Zayn. But what I saw was something I didn't expect to see. He was sitting really close to certain blond girl. Actually, they were really close she was almost sitting on his lap. He was whispering something on her ear and she was giggling. A really annoying giggle let me tell you.

"That's Samantha" Louis whispered on my ear "She is Zayn's girlfriend"

I nodded and walked deeper inside the room. I said hi to everyone, but Zayn was too busy talking to his girlfriend to notice I was there. I sat down between Liam and Louis and the three of us started to talk. No one seemed to be interested in the movie, anyways. Zayn was with his girlfriend, Irine was talking to Niall and Harry and Liam and Louis were talking to me.

At some point in our conversation my eyes turned to Zayn once again. He was kissing Samantha. My heart sank. I quickly looked away, not really liking what I felt when I saw them together. I really don't know what's wrong with me. I mean, there's nothing between Zayn and I, we're just friend…I guess it hurt me that he hadn't tell me he had a girlfriend. And that he hadn't even noticed I was here.


	7. Chapter 7

"Well…I'm hungry" Niall said standing up

"I am too" Agreed Harry, standing up as well

"Why don't we cook something?" Irine offered

"NO!" Both Liam and Louis screamed standing up

"Why not?" I asked raising an eyebrow

"We'll burn the kitchen down" Liam said

"None of us can cook" Louis added "well, maybe just Harry…"

"Then…what do we eat?"

"Let's order Pizza!" Niall said

"Sure, let's do that"

Everyone agreed and walked to the kitchen. Louis took the phone and ordered four pizzas. We sat by the table of the kitchen, chatting, joking and waiting for the Pizza when Zayn finally decided to join us. His girlfriend was holding onto his arm as if her life depended on that. I found myself looking somewhere else.

"Lexy!" Zayn exclaimed "Didn't know you were here"

"She has been here for the past 20 minutes, mate" Liam said

"I just didn't notice when she came" Zayn said shrugging

"Its fine" I said smiling at him "I'm as quiet as a shadow, remember?"

I smirked at him and he smiled back, both of us remembering an old joke between us. Everyone looked at us confused but then shrugged it off and started to have their normal conversations (well, as normal as they can be with these boys).

I noticed Samantha glaring at me, probably wondering what Zayn and I were going on about.

"Hello" I said smiling at her "I'm Alexandra"

"So you're the famous Alexandra" she said rolling her eyes

"I'm not sure about the 'famous' part"

"Oh you are" she said, taking a seat across from me "Everyone in this house talks about you"

"Are you serious? Awn! Guys, I feel loved" I said, smiling at all the boys who smiled back at me

"But…Who are you anyways?" She asked "you're not some famous singer or dancer, or a model…how do you know them?"

"I'm an old friend of Zayn's" I said, she raised an eyebrow at me at the sound of her boyfriend's name "We met long ago…were best friends but then I moved away"

"Just a few days ago she moved back here" Zayn continued

"We caught up and well…started to hang out once again!" I finished beaming

"That's…nice" she said faking a smile "I'm Samantha, Zayn's girlfriend for over a year"

"Nice to meet you"

The pizza arrived and we all started to eat. Samantha didn't eat. She said she had to 'take care of her figure' and then went on and on about her career as a model. I saw all the boys roll their eyes, making it obvious they had heard this millions of times.

"Alex" Irine spoke from her long silence "Why do you have your cap on?"

I looked at her confused until I realized I still had the cap of my hoodie over my head, covering my hair. I shrugged it off and I could feel as my hair bounced out, doing anything to be free.

Have you ever seen up? When the young Ellie takes out her helmet and her hair goes in every direction possible? Well…I bet my hair looked like that right now.

"You're curly!" Harry exclaimed "I mean, natural curly!"

"Well….yeah" I said "thought I curled my hair every morning?"

"It looked like that" Louis said

"Well…I used to" I said "But this my natural hair…bushy, messy, and curly"

"It looks great on you" Niall commented

"Why, thank you"

"I'm not the only curly now!" Harry said "YES! CURLIES RULE THE WORLD!"

We all laughed at him. Well…all except Samantha who just rolled her eyes.

Harry then wrapped his arm around my shoulders and started to talk about how we were now going to be called the 'curly duo' and how we would be the most amazing people in the whole world and that everyone was going to love us.

"You know" Samantha spoke "You could do something to your hair"

"What do you mean?"

"It's just so…bushy and out of style" she said so as if it was a disgusting thing "You could always use some special products to control it…or at least take the time to comb it"

"I like it that way, thank you very much"

I ignored her and continued to talk with the others. We were eating the last pizza. Well, Niall and I were. We were doing some kind of competition to see who could eat it first. He won. I was full after eating my last four slices.

"Do you like carrots?" Louis suddenly answered

"What?" I asked confused

"Do you like carrots?" he asked again

"Well…yeah" I said, still confused

"Why?"

"Because they make a good salad and are so…orange-ish" I said, not really getting where we were going with this conversation.

"You're perfect!" he gasped, looking at me with wonder

"What?" I asked once again, this time laughing at his randomness

"You're like the perfect girl!" he exclaimed "Would you marry me?"

"I thought it was clear I was not looking for a relationship right now" I said smirking

"Then I'll wait for you!" he said, his voice serious, acting like a 'charming prince' "I'll wait for you until the very end!"

I just help myself and started to laugh. Everyone else joined me. Louis really was one of the most random persons I know. Of course he was not serious about it. We were just friends and he loved to joke about it.

"So let me get this straight" I said "You love me 'cause I like carrots?"

"And 'cause you're curly"

"Hey!" Harry exclaimed "I thought you liked ME 'cause I'm curly!"

"Yeah…I love you too Haz"

"You can't love him if you love me!" I exclaimed

"Indeed mate" Harry said nodding "You will have to choose"

"You can't make me choose!" Louis exclaimed in horror "That's an impossible task!"

"Then…you'll have none of us!" I announced, linking my arm with Harry's

"That's right!" He said smirking.

"NOOOOOO!"

We all started laughing so hard tears were running down our cheeks. Harry was practically on the floor and I was holding my stomach because it hurt for so much laughter. Everyone else seemed to be in the same conditions as us…well, everyone but Samantha.

"You guys are so random" Irine said shaking her head

"So immature" Samantha said under her breath, but we all could hear her

"Oi!" I exclaimed, stopping from my laughter at her comment "We're not immature!"

"We know how to have fun" Louis added

"Well…that's childish" she said "You Louis, should be the more mature from all of us…you're the oldest!"

"That's rubbish" he said rolling his eyes "I don't have to be 'mature' because I'm the oldest. Leave that to Liam" We all chuckled.

"Stop ruining the moment Sam" I said, smirking at the glare I got from her "Enjoy life!"

"My name is Samantha" She said still glaring at me "And I do enjoy life…but in stuff that are actually important"

We all rolled our eyes at her (well…all except Zayn) and decided to drop the subject. She was just going to continue being annoying.

We decided to continue watching movies. This time, Disney movies! We watched Lion King first. Both, Irine and I cried when Mufasa died, and I think Louis was crying too. We then moved to Lilo and Stitch. Well…we were forced to by Liam, because it's one of his fav movies. We then moved to Finding Nemo, but by then Samantha got tired of 'child movies' and dragged Zayn out of the living room and into his room.

I rolled my eyes but continued to watch the movie, my head resting against Louis' shoulder.


End file.
